You can't move forward if you're standing still
by Hypnotoad76
Summary: Slight future fic. Annie finds out Pierce might not graduate and confronts him about it. Annie and Pierce friendship, minor Jeff/Annie.


**This was my first attempt at branching out and writing a Community fanfic that wasn't focused on Jeff and Annie, although my shipper heart couldn't help adding a bit of that in here as well. **

At the beginning of their fourth year at Greendale Annie made a big decision. That not only was she going to graduate at the end of the year, but that she was going to make sure everyone in the study group did also. She wanted to make sure they all went on to find success. But she also privately admitted that she really wanted to see all of them up on stage together in their cap and gown getting their diploma (or whatever the Greendale equivalent was.) Because of her Adderall addiction she had missed her high school graduation ceremony. And it would mean a lot to her if she could share this ceremony with the people she was closest to.

Right away she told the group of her plan and that she would do everything she could to help everyone get there. While normally they might be apprehensive of her enthusiasm and tell her off for involving herself so much in their lives, since her passion was making sure they all made it to graduation they didn't think it was that bad of an idea if she kept on top of it.

As the school year wore on Annie not only worked hard and excelled at her own studies, but she kept tabs on the progress of the rest of the group. Some people she ended up not having to worry about. Shirley had always done fairly well in her classes. And since most of her classes that year were business classes geared towards her dream of opening a bakery, graduation was all but ensured for her. The same also went for Abed. All of his classes for his fourth year were related to film, so she never had an issue with him about whether or not he was going to graduate.

While Annie had been worried about Britta she had turned out to be a pleasant surprise. While she had struggled with her classes in the past she seemed to have turned over a new leaf ever since she picked psychology as a major. Before their fourth year had even begun she had taken classes over the summer to catch up on the required courses. And not only that, but Britta seemed to have an uncanny knack for the subject. By the time the second semester arrived Britta was even occasionally doing better at her studies then Annie. And rather than be mad or spiteful over it, Annie was actually happy for Britta. While Annie still loved to excel and worked hard at whatever she did, she had grown beyond the need to obsessively be the best at everything.

Jeff, however, she had to keep on top of. In spite of what he said she knew he was smarter then he let on or sometimes realized himself. His main problem was motivation and laziness. Even after all this time, and the prospect of finally graduating and getting back to his old life, he still put off his work and tried to take the easy way out. Annie spent the whole year keeping on top of him, making sure he kept on top of his work and actually studied for his exams. The group kept making fun of the fact of how mom like Annie was when it came to Jeff and school, which Annie hated considering she and Jeff were finally involved in an actual relationship and it weirded her out when people used the word 'mom' to describe her and Jeff . But in spite of it she kept up her diligence with Jeff and school. If it came down to it she used the last resort of telling Jeff they couldn't have sex until he got his work done. Although she hated doing it since that was as much of a punishment for her as it was for him. Not that she would ever admit it out loud to him.

Troy turned out to be the biggest challenge. While he was willing to do the work and wanted to graduate, the fact remained that learning was still hard for him. It had always taken him a while to get the subject matter even when he put in the effort. Annie ended up spending many nights in the Dreamatorium with Troy meticulously tutoring him for every one of his classes. She came up with everything from rhyming schemes to badly produced skits to get him to absorb and remember the material. She worked so hard that her own grades slipped a little (she came to accept that she was going to have to settle for a B+ in one of her classes.) But luckily all of her hard work paid off in the end. By the beginning of May Troy had gotten to the point where unless he fucked up on all of his finals (and Annie was damn well not going to let that happen), he was going to pass his classes and graduate with everyone.

Annie was extremely happy that her dream was actually going to come true. Not only was she going to graduate but all of her friends were going to be there too. She thought nothing could stop it from happening.

Unfortunately, one member had to throw a curb ball into her entire plan at the last minute.

Along with everyone else Annie had kept an eye on Pierce's studies. While he didn't seem to take education seriously he at least was doing fairly well in his classes. But three weeks before they all had their last set of finals Annie discovered that Pierce was in danger of failing one of his classes. She mentally kicked herself for not being more diligent and making sure it didn't come to this. She was one person away from all of them graduating together. She was damned if she was going to let her be beaten now.

Which was why she found herself driving to Pierce's mansion to talk to him about it. As she pulled into the massive driveway and walked up to the manor she tried to compose what exactly she was going to say. While a million ideas flowed through her head none of them seemed right, and she unnervingly found herself unprepared as she rang the doorbell.

A few moments later the door opened and Pierce was standing in the doorway. "Annie. Hello. Come in, come in." She walked in and followed him as they went into his massive kitchen. "You hungry? My cook makes these really tasty pulled pork sandwiches."

"UUUUUUUUUUUMMM…I'm good." She quickly decided not to even say anything about that one. She rubbed her hands together before jumping in to address the issue head on. "Pierce, do you know that you're failing your World History class?"

"What? No? This is complete news to me."

"Pierce!" she exclaimed, seeing through his terrible acting attempt right away. "If you knew you were failing why didn't you… you know what, that's not what's important. All that matters is fixing this. I've already talked to your teacher and he said that if you get a 90 or above on your final he'll pass you. I'll tutor you every night until then and we'll-."

"Annie!" Annie stopped talking as Pierce raised his voice. "I don't want to pass the class."

"What?"

"I'm not going to do it. I'll just fail it and take it over. Or not at all."

"But Pierce, with some hard work we can-."

"Annie, this isn't the first time I've done this."

She looked at him, not sure at what he meant. "What?"

"Annie, I've been going to this school for fourteen years. I pick a major, work on it for a while, then fail one or two classes and move on to another one. It always worked out that way. But then I met you six, and I wanted to do things differently. I actually stuck with a major and worked towards graduating and leaving Greendale. But I realized it was a stupid idea."

"Pierce, why would you think graduating is stupid?"

As he sat down on one of the bar stools Annie could see a side of Pierce that he rarely revealed, the part that wasn't clueless and judgmental, but instead open and vulnerable. "Unlike you I didn't go to Greendale to change my life. I went because I was bored and was looking for something to do. So I went and I liked it. And I don't want to leave. I'm not like you guys. When you six leave you'll be starting your life, or entering into the next chapter of your life. But when I leave, I'll have nothing. I'll just go back to puttering around my mansion, not having anything to do with my time. It'll be like summer vacation, only permanent."

Annie stood still for a moment, absorbing how much Pierce had revealed to her, before she sat next to him on a bar stool. "Pierce, I'm going to tell you something I've never told anyone."

"Oh, so it'll be just something me and Jeff know?"

"Pierce, Jeff doesn't know about this." Pierce looked over at Annie as she finally had his full attention. "When I first went to rehab I hated being there. Even though I wanted to get clean I hated constantly being watched and having no privacy or time to myself. But after a week I started liking it. Everything was structured and organized. You didn't have to worry about things like 'does this person like me', or 'am I going to be made fun of if I do this'. You knew that if you did stumble or fall people were there to pick you right back up. I was in my own little world of safety.

"A week before I was scheduled to leave I became terrified. I knew once I left I wouldn't have this network of people watching over me. I would be on my own and would have to watch out for myself. Instead of just getting better I would have a barrage of other problems to deal with. And if I slipped I wouldn't have people there to immediately catch me. The thought of leaving and having to reenter the real world was horrifying. I was so afraid that I actually considered getting some pills. It wouldn't have been that hard. Not everyone who went to rehab was serious about getting better. It was easy to find someone who could get you drugs. I didn't even want them to get high or excel. I just wanted a reason not to leave.

"But ultimately I realized that while it was safe there, it would also hold me back if I stayed. Yes, the world outside was hard and sometimes scary. But it also had amazing opportunities that I would miss out on if I didn't get out there. So I stayed clean and left rehab. And yes, a lot of terrible things happened once I was gone. But I also ended up going here, and meeting you and Jeff and all the wonderful people that are now in my life. That never would have happened if I didn't let go of my 'security blanket' when it was time to outgrown it."

As she finished her story she looked at Pierce, hoping he got what she was saying. He looked at her as he mulled over her words. "Annie…"

"Pierce, you've been at that school for almost fifteen years. And yes, you've had some amazing experiences. But it's time you allowed yourself to move on. Because you're wrong with what you said before. You'll be entering the next chapter in your life also. It might not be the same as ours, but you will be moving forward. The only way you'll be 'puttering around your mansion' is if you allow it. Pierce, I promise that I will work with you nightly and do everything I can to get you to ace that final and pass your class. But it can only happen if you really want it. Do you want it?"

Pierce looked down at his hands as he truly thought about if he wanted it or not.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Ok everyone; just hold it one more time, aaaaaaaannnnnnnnnddddddd, perfect. " Dean Pelton smiled as he handed Annie, Shirley, Jeff and Abed their cameras back. "You guys look so stunning in your gowns. Jeffrey, make sure you sent me a copy of your group picture." He leaned in uncomfortably close to Jeff. "And also that picture I took of just the two of us."

"Sure thing Dean." Jeff waited until Pelton went over to some other students before scrolling through his phone. "And delete." He momentarily lost his balance as Annie engulfed him in a tight hug. He quickly took a picture of her smiling face before planting a deep kiss on her lips.

"Guys, come on, I just ate."

"Who ever heard of eating during a graduation ceremony anyway Troy?"

"It's the last time I can have those chicken fingers Britta. I wasn't about to pass that up."

As Annie pulled away she truly felt content as she looked at everyone. After all of their hard work they actually made it to graduation. If the world ended at that exact moment she would die a happy woman.

She was snapped out of her thoughts as Jeff loudly cleared his throat. "Ok everyone. Remember the reservation at Mori's is at 5pm. And they're renting out a private room for us so we should be there on time."

"Did-."

"Yes Britta, they have a vegetarian option." As everyone started leaving the stage Jeff playfully tugged at Annie's hair. "Did you want to go to your place to pick up some stuff or did you want to just go straight back to my place?"

"You can go to the car or whatever. I'll be with you in a few minutes." She gave Jeff a quick kiss before she went over to Pierce. He was standing at the edge of the stage looking at the campus. "Pierce?"

"I would have thought it would have said more." He unrolled the piece of paper in his hand and showed it to Annie. "It just says congratulations on it. I would have thought after fourteen years I'd at least get something with my name on it."

"I'm pretty sure this is just for today's ceremony and they'll mail us our actual diplomas. At least I hope so. Are you ok?"

"Oh, I'll be fine. I made the right decision. But I'll still going to miss it here."

"I know. I'm going to miss it too." She hugged Pierce; glad he had finally found the courage to graduate. After a moment she felt his arms wrap around her as he hugged her back. They stayed there for several moments before finally separating. "Ok. I have to go shower and change. But I'll see you in a few hours."

"Annie." She stopped and turned back around. "Thank you. For everything."

"You're welcome."


End file.
